The occlusion of the arteries can lead to insufficient blood flow resulting in discomfort and risks of angina and ischemia. Significant blockage of blood flow in the coronary artery can result in damage to the myocardial tissue or death of the patient. In most cases, occlusion of the artery results from progressive long term deposits of plaque along the artery wall. While such deposits may be concentrated and occlude the artery at a particular site, the deposits are most certainly present throughout the arteries and the vascular system.
Coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery is a surgical procedure performed in severe cases of coronary blockages. CABG procedures involve anastomosing an artery to a graft, such as a vascular graft, which restores the flow of blood by establishing another pathway around the occluded vasculature. During coronary artery bypass graft surgery, a vein or other conduit can be attached proximally to the patient's aorta. The other end is attached to the blocked artery, downstream from the obstruction, thus bypassing the coronary occlusion. CABG procedures can be done by placing the patient on a heart-lung machine and stopping the heart from beating or they can be done on a beating heart without a heart lung machine.
Vessel eversion apparatus have been disclosed to prepare vascular grafts for anastomosis. For example, vessel everting apparatus is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,076,161 to Kirsch, et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 6,176,413 to Heck, et al. However, there remains a need to provide improved everting apparatus and methods.